Residents near damaged homes survey a landslide near the Sunkoshi River northeast of Kathmandu. Eight bodies were found, and scores are missing.

Photo: Nepal Army, AFP/Getty Images

Residents near damaged homes survey a landslide near the Sunkoshi...

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TOPSHOTS Nepalese rescue personnel examine the site of a landslide on the Sukoshi river northeast of Kathmandu on August 2, 2014. A massive landslide in Nepal's northeast left at least eight people dead and dozens missing as officials worked to clear debris blocking a major river and avert the possibility of flash floods. The landslide struck in the early hours, burying two dozen homes before dumping mud and stones into the Sunkoshi river, northeast of the capital Kathmandu, Prakash Adhikari, press adviser to the prime minister, told AFP. Police and army officials retrieved eight bodies and airlifted 34 people to safety, including 19 who suffered serious injuries. AFP PHOTO/Dipesh SHRESTHADIPESH SHRESTHA/AFP/Getty Images

Photo: Dipesh Shrestha, AFP/Getty Images

TOPSHOTS Nepalese rescue personnel examine the site of a landslide...

Image 3 of 3

The scene of a landslide on the Sukoshi river is seen from the air northeast of Nepal's capital Kathmandu on August 2, 2014. A massive landslide in Nepal's northeast left at least eight people dead and dozens missing as officials worked to clear debris blocking a major river and avert the possibility of flash floods. The landslide struck in the early hours, burying two dozen homes before dumping mud and stones into the Sunkoshi river, northeast of the capital Kathmandu, Prakash Adhikari, press adviser to the prime minister, told AFP. Police and army officials retrieved eight bodies and airlifted 34 people to safety, including 19 who suffered serious injuries. AFP PHOTO/Dipesh SHRESTHADIPESH SHRESTHA/AFP/Getty Images

Kathmandu, Nepal -- Fresh rainfall hampered a search early Sunday for scores of villagers believed to be buried by a massive landslide in northern Nepal, where army troops used explosives to blast a river blockage in an attempt to release a dangerous water buildup.

Police said eight bodies have been recovered so far, but villagers say more than 100 people were thought to have been crushed by the landslide that engulfed houses in Mankha village, about 75 miles east of Kathmandu, on Saturday.

Rain on Sunday made it difficult for officers and army rescuers to sift through the piles of mud and rocks in search of survivors, police said.

Controlled explosions by the army were able to knock down part of an earth wall that had blocked a river and created a temporary dam, allowing some water to flow out. But much of it still remained trapped, posing an immediate threat to downstream villages as far as India.

A man who was among the dozens of people injured by the landslide said the death toll could be higher than 100.

"There are nearly 100 people in the 60 houses in my village and 20 more people in the neighboring village who were buried by the landslide. All of them are likely dead," Durga Lal Shrestha said from his hospital bed in Kathmandu, the capital, where he was flown by helicopter.

Shrestha, who suffered bruises on his face and arms, said he and his family heard a rumbling sound and the ground shook like an earthquake.

"The walls in my house caved in, but the roof was fine and that is how we were able to survive," he said. "When we came out, it was dark and muddy. Everyone was screaming and it was a chaotic situation."

About 40 people were injured. Besides Shrestha, 10 others were flown to Kathmandu for medical treatment.

The Arniko highway, which connects Nepal to Tibet, remained closed on Sunday.

In neighboring India's Bihar state, officials were evacuating thousands of villagers along the Kosi River to higher ground because of the risk of flash floods coming from Nepal, said Anirudh Prasad, a government official in Patna.

Landslides are common in Nepal during the rainy season, which runs from June through September.

A landslide in 2012 killed at least 26 people when an avalanche blocked the Seti River. The walls burst, causing a flash flood that struck several downstream villages.